6 Ways To Get The Most Out Of Music Lessons

These guidelines will help you have a successful, rewarding experience learning an instrument. These are practical tips that we have discovered from years of teaching and our experience with teaching hundreds of students each year.

1. Instrument quality
The quality of the instrument one uses to learn on is extremely important. An instrument that is easy to play and produces good tone makes learning music much easier and is fun. Poor quality instruments that have a weak tone and are harder to play on will discourage the student from practicing.

2. Insist on private lessons when learning a specific instrument
Group classes work well for preschool music programs and theory classes. However, when actually learning how to play an instrument, private lessons are far superior. In a private lesson, each student can learn at their own pace and the teacher can provide the student with the individual attention necessary to develop a good musical foundation. During the private lesson, the Student is the primary focus of the teacher who, in turn, can help the student be the best that they can be.

3. Take lessons in a professional teaching environment
Learning music is not just a matter of having a qualified teacher, but also having a musically nuturing environment . At Bellingham Academy of Music, our private studios provide the focused environment needed to encourage success at performing music. At our Academy, teaching is not just a hobby or sideline for our teachers but a responsibility they take very seriously.

4. Make practicing easier
As with anything, improving in music takes practice. One of the main problems with music lessons is the drudgery of practicing and the fight between parents and students to practice every day. Here are some ways to make practicing easier:

• Time
  Set a time every day to practice so it becomes part of a routine or habit. This works particularly well for children. Generally the earlier in the day the practicing occurs, the less reminding a parent needs to do to get the child to practice.
  
  
• Repetition
We use this method quite often when setting practice schedules for beginners. For a young child, 20-30 minutes may seem like an eternity. Instead of setting a time frame, we use repetition. For example, we may ask our young students to practice a piece 4 times every day and a particular scale 5 times each day. The child then does not pay attention to the amount of time they are practicing their instrument, but knows if they are on repetition number 3, they are almost finished.

5. Have a performance goal
Whether it is playing for your friends or family or participating in a recital, performance opportunities help students focus and remain motivated. At Bellingham Academy of Music, we provide our students with many options for performing opportunities. This provides students with a goal and offers the additional motivation of hearing peers perform who are at different levels of skill.

6. When to start
Adults can start any instrument at any time. Their success is based on how willing they are to commit to practicing. We teach many beginner students in their 60's and older.
For children starting at the right age is a key element to the success of their lessons. Some people will tell you "the sooner the better" but this attitude can actually backfire. If a child is put into lessons too soon they may feel overwhelmed and frustrated and want to stop lessons. The last thing you want to do is turn a child off music just because they had an unpleasant experience that could have been prevented. Sometimes if the child waits a year to start lessons their progress can be much faster. The following guidelines may provide some help to determine the right age to begin lessons:

• Piano
At Bellingham Academy of Music 5 years old is the youngest age that we start children in private piano lessons. At this age, children have begun to develop longer attention spans and can retain material with ease


• Guitar
  8 years old is the earliest we recommend for guitar lesson. Guitar playing requires a fair amount of pressure on the fingertips from pressing on the strings. Children under 8 generally have small hands and may find playing uncomfortable.